Comfort In Your Arms
by wild-angel82
Summary: The title is pretty self-explanatory... Emily and JJ find comfort in each other as their friend is fighting for her life.


Title: Comfort In Your Arms

Pairing: Emily/JJ

Rating: PG/K

Summary: The title is pretty self-explanatory... Emily and JJ find comfort in each other as their friend is fighting for her life.

Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds or its characters. I wish I did, though.

A/N: Encouraged by the wonderful reviews of my first story, I decided to post my second creation. I hope you like it.

**Comfort In Your Arms**

**JJ**

As you sit alone in a cold hospital hallway, you can't help but almost feel surprised that you're not familiar with a situation like this, considering your line of work. You've been on the job long enough to know the atrocities of the world, as well as the danger those who try to make the world a better place face every day, but somehow it feels almost unnatural for Garcia to be lying in a hospital bed fighting for her life.

You sigh as you bury your face in your hands. Garcia of all people. Not that it would make it any more easier if it was Hotch or Morgan, but hell they run around with guns chasing bad guys, so in a way it's bound to happen sooner or later. But Garcia? She's your computer person. She's supposed to be safe in her office, surrounded by her equipment and buried in screens and keyboards, and not on the street getting shot. This is just wrong. Again, not that it wouldn't be wrong if anyone else was lying there instead of Garcia, but there is just something so unfair about the whole situation that it makes you sick to your stomach.

You quickly wipe away a small tear that you feel running on your cheek, because you have decided that you are not going to cry. You have decided to remain strong and confident that Garcia is going to be OK. Because she is. Any minute now the doctors are going to come out of the operating room and tell you that Garcia is fine. You know they are. Because this is the only way the whole thing can end. The only way. So even if it kills you, you are not going to cry. Not until you're told that everything is fine and you can cry tears of joy.

Suddenly you realize that you're no longer alone. You feel someone's breath on your neck and you don't even have to turn around to see who it is. Emily. She slides her hand into yours and you gently squeeze it, almost shocked at how much comfort the simple touch of Emily's hand on yours brings you. It feels like the most natural thing in the world, like your hands were meant to be joined like this.

For a moment neither of you say anything, because words really seem redundant at that particular moment. You feel the warmth of Emily's hand on yours and you squeeze a little harder, holding on to her like you were trying to scream 'Please don't let go.' And she must hear you somehow, because her gentle caress seems to be saying 'I won't.' And you wonder if it feels as amazing to her as it does to you. Almost too amazing, considering the reason you both found yourself in this situation.

Emily is the first one to break the silence. "She's going to be OK."

"I know." You reply and you so desperately wanna believe that it's true. You keep trying to convince yourself that nothing could possibly really happen to Garcia, because she's Garcia and she just has to be fine. She has to. "It's just… It's Garcia, you know?"

"I know." She sighs and somehow you feel like she knows exactly what you're thinking. It wouldn't be the first time either. For some reason she has learned to read you like a book and she has gotten to know you better than anyone ever has. And you have learned to appreciate that connection and the little moments when you don't have to say anything, yet she always knows what is going on inside your head.

"You would think that we should be used to things like that considering what we do. Or at least somehow be prepared…"

"I don't think anything can ever prepare you for this." She interjects. "No matter how much hurt and destruction we see in our job, it won't prepare us for when one of our closest friends gets shot and keeps fighting for her life." She adds and you could swear she is almost crying. Which catches you by surprise, because she has always seemed to you like such a strong person. Of course the fact that she might be crying doesn't mean that she isn't, but you are a little surprised that she is letting you see the more vulnerable side of herself. And even with the whole situation, you are somewhat glad that she is.

As you realize that your muscles have gotten a little tired, you find a slightly more comfortable position, with your head gently resting on Emily's shoulder. You're worried she is going to push you away, because she can't possibly be comfortable with your head on your shoulder like that, but she doesn't. So you nestle into her arms a little bit as you continue the wait.

"I remember the first time I met Garcia." You start and you can't stop your lips from forming a small smile at the memory. "She scared me." You add and you hear Emily chuckle a little.

"Yeah, me too." She admits with a small laugh. "But in a good way ." She continues.

"The best way." You smile again as you start remembering the time you first got introduced to the computer goddess. "When she got introduced to me as a computer analyst I was like 'you've gotta be kidding me.'"

"Yeah, I get what you mean." She agrees and you can feel that she is laughing as well. "She is definitely not what I picture when I think computer analyst."

"No, she's not. But she's so damn good at her job. I know Reid is supposed to be the genius here, but I swear Garcia is not any less smart than he is. Except that she has a special relationship with computers instead of books."

"Yeah, that she does." Emily sighs.

"And she's such a good person. I mean that's what got her in this situation in the first place. She just wanted to help people. Because that's what she does, she helps people. I can't count the times when she has helped me ever since I met her. And it's not always about some huge gestures. The little things matter too, you know? Like when she calls me at my office to tell me to take a break, because she knows I've been going through cases for a couple of hours. Or when she sends Morgan to me with some of his stupid jokes when she knows I'm having a bad day. She's just a great friend and I'm so glad to have her in my life."

"Me too. I mean I haven't known her for all that long, but she is definitely one of the most amazing people I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. I remember this one time when I was having a really crappy day and when I was leaving the BAU office, I was seriously ready to kill someone!" Emily starts recounting and you are so glad that you're not the only one who has fond memories of Garcia. "And then I saw Garcia standing at the door with a bottle of wine and my entire anger just suddenly disappeared. Seriously. It was like magic."

"Well, she has that effect on people. She is the goddess after all." You point out and you hear Emily laughing. And for a moment, lost in the memories of your friend, you forget why are you having this trip down the memory lane in the first place. You forget that the reason you are now sharing all those stories about Garcia is because you are in the hospital after she has been shot. You forget, but only for a moment.

"I can't believe that this is happening." You finally say, bringing you both back to reality. "I just can't believe it. This is just so unfair, she doesn't deserve it!" You sigh as you cover your face with your hands, because you feel tears welling up in your eyes again and you are trying so hard not to let them fall. After all, you promised yourself that you weren't going to cry.

"No she doesn't." You hear Emily say. "But she is strong and she's a fighter, so she is going to pull through."

"You know, I wanna believe that so badly, I really do." You say, your voice almost weeping. "But we have seen so much bad stuff happen that I just…"

"Shhh…" You feel the warmth of Emily's fingers on your lips as she is trying to silence you. "Don't even think like that. You can't think like that. Garcia is gonna kill you for thinking like that when she wakes up." Emily warns you and you are amazed at how she makes everything so much easier. And of course all the members of the team are there as well, comforting each other, but somehow Emily is the only one who can keep you from falling apart. And you almost feel guilty for feeling so good and comfortable in her arms. You are so blessed that she is there for you and you can only hope that your little conversation has helped her as much as it has helped you. Because you know she is hurting and even though she won't say it, she does need someone to keep her from falling apart too. And you want to be that person for her, you want to give her what she has given you, even if you don't know exactly what it is yet.

And as you spend the next couple of minutes in complete silence, her arms wrapped around you and her hand still holding onto yours, waiting for some news, any news about your friend, somehow you know that everything is going to be fine.

**EMILY**

You feel a cold chill as you walk through the hospital hallway. You can't say if it really is this cold there, or is the chill brought about by the situation that you have found yourself in. When you got the call about Garcia it almost seemed like a prank, because Garcia was supposed to be safe in the walls of the BAU. But she wasn't. Instead she was here, with a gunshot wound, fighting for her life. And even though it has been a while since you've been at the hospital, you still keep hoping that this is all just a horrible nightmare that you are going to wake up from any minute. Because Garcia couldn't have possibly gotten shot…

But she has. And right now she is in some cold hospital operating room, with a team of doctors trying to make sure that she's going to come back to you. And you so desperately wanna trust that they will do everything in their power to make that happen. You think back at all the times when you have asked members of victims' families to trust you and let you do your job and you pray to God that those doctors are trying as hard as your team does during every case.

When you turn your head you suddenly see JJ sitting alone on a chair a couple of feet from you. You see her wiping away her tears and it breaks your heart to see her like that. With everything that you have been feeling in the past couple of hours, you can't even begin to imagine what JJ has been going through. Her and Garcia have been friends for a long time and you know that JJ must be in hell. You can see that she's trying really hard not to cry and you know she desperately wants to hide from everybody how much she's really hurting.

For a moment you contemplate whether to walk up to her and say something. But what? What do you say in a situation like this? So many times in job you have told people not to lose faith, but it seems so much harder when the person who is supposed to not lose faith is you. What do you do to make this easier on her? And is it selfish of you to want to be close to her to make it easier on yourself? You don't know why or how, but she tends to make everything easier. Her mere presence makes your life better and in a situation like this, she is the one person you want to be with, because you know she is going to make you stronger.

You finally decide that you can no longer keep your distance from JJ. If she won't want your company, you know she will tell you, but if she does, maybe the two of you can help each other get through this. You slowly walk up to where she is sitting and sit on a chair beside her. For a second you wonder what you should do next, but before you are able to make a conscious decision about it, your hand is on hers and she takes it and squeezes it, as if it's exactly what she needs. Her reaction surprises you a little bit, but you are glad that she seems to be responding well to your gesture. And what surprises you even more is the intensity with which she is holding onto your hand. Not that you mind, not at all.

For a moment you just sit in silence, until you finally decide to break it. "She's going to be OK." You say and more than anything you want to be as sure of that as you sound.

"I know." She replies and you feel how hard she's trying to sound sure of what she's saying as well. "It's just… It's Garcia, you know?"

"I know." You say and you think that you really do. After all, Garcia is the one person you would least expect to get hurt, let alone shot. She was supposed to hide behind her computers and nothing was ever supposed to get to her. Nothing was ever supposed to hurt her. You and Morgan and Hotch are in the line of fire all the time, so it's kind of fair game, but Garcia? Why would anyone ever want to hurt Garcia? This is just not making any sense to you and as you try to wrap your head around it, JJ starts to speak again.

"You would think that we should be used to things like that considering what we do. Or at least somehow be prepared…" She says and you realize that she's having a hard time wrapping her head around the whole situation as well. You decide to cut her short, though.

"I don't think anything can ever prepare you for this." You say softly. "No matter how much hurt and destruction we see in our job, it won't prepare us for when one of our closest friend gets shot and keeps fighting for her life." You add and it hits you how right you really are. Nothing prepares you for this. Not the crime scenes, not running around with guns chasing bad guys, not even seeing dead people on a daily basis. You see so many horrible things in your job every day, yet nothing seems more horrible than not knowing if one of your best friends is going to survive a difficult surgery. These are the things you don't really think about that often, which make them even more difficult to deal with when they happen. And this is one of the most difficult things you have ever had to deal with in your entire life. You sigh and you suddenly feel that your eyes are getting wet. And you think about JJ and how you want so much to be strong for her, but this is getting harder and harder.

You suddenly feel JJ stretch her muscles a little bit and you become scared that she is going to pull away and take away the pleasant warmth of her hand that has been giving you so much comfort in the last couple of minutes. To your surprise, not only does she not pull away, but when she's done stretching her muscles, her head is suddenly rested on your shoulder, her hand still in yours. You feel the warmth of her back on your shoulder and your chest and you can't help but realize how amazing it feels. You smile at the thought that it has to feel good for JJ as well, because otherwise she wouldn't have done what she did. At least that's what you would like to believe.

"I remember the first time I met Garcia." You hear JJ say. "She scared me." She adds and you can't help but chuckle, because you know exactly what she means.

"Yeah, me too." You admit and laugh at the memory of your first meeting with Garcia. "But in a good way ."

"The best way." She says firmly. "When she got introduced to me as a computer analyst I was like 'you've gotta be kidding me.'" She adds almost laughing.

"Yeah, I get what you mean." And you really do. You both know that Garcia is an exceptional person. "She is definitely not what I picture when I think computer analyst." And while she really is not, it doesn't mean that she is not a great computer analyst.

"No, she's not. But she's so damn good at her job." You hear JJ say and it amazes you how both of you are thinking the exact same thing. "I know Reid is supposed to be the genius here, but I swear Garcia is not any less smart than he is." JJ continues. "Except that she has a special relationship with computers instead of books."

"Yeah, that she does." You say with a sigh.

"And she's such a good person. I mean that's what got her in this situation in the first place. She just wanted to help people. Because that's what she does, she helps people." JJ starts talking about her friend and you can sense how much she is hurting over all of this. "I can't count the times when she has helped me over the years. And it's not always about some huge gestures. The little things matter too, you know? Like when she calls me at my office to tell me to take a break, because she knows I've been going through cases for a couple of hours. Or when she sends Morgan to me with some of his stupid jokes when she knows I'm having a bad day. She's just a great friend and I'm so glad to have her in my life."

"Me too." You tell her and it's the truth. There haven't been that many people in your life that you have ever considered friends, but Garcia is definitely one of them. JJ is, of course, one of them as well, but your relationship with her is so much more complicated and you'd rather not think about it right now, even with her lying comfortably in your arms. You know this is just too much for you to ponder in one night and you'd rather concentrate on Garcia now. "I mean I haven't known her for all that long, but she is definitely one of the most amazing people I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. I remember this one time when I was having a really crappy day and when I was leaving the BAU office, I was seriously ready to kill someone!" You smile at the memory of one of the worst days you have ever had working for the BAU and how Garcia chose to make it all better. "And then I saw Garcia standing at the door with a bottle of wine and my entire anger just suddenly disappeared. Seriously. It was like magic."

"Well, she has that effect on people. She is the goddess after all." JJ smiles delicately and you are so glad that at least for a moment you were able to lighten up the mood. You are both still hurting very badly, but talking about all the nice and crazy things that Garcia has done for you two makes the whole situation a little more bearable. Though obviously you can't forget why you both are where you are.

"I can't believe that this is happening." JJ finally breaks the momentary silence and you feel that she's becoming more serious again. "I just can't believe it. This is just so unfair, she doesn't deserve it!" She almost cries and you see her covering her face with her hands. You can sense that she is slowly starting to lose it and that she is trying really hard not to.

"No she doesn't." You agree and it makes you so mad that someone as wonderful as Penelope Garcia has to be going through something like this. "But she is strong and she's a fighter, so she is going to pull through." You tell her and more than anything you want her to believe your words.

"You know, I wanna believe that so badly, I really do." She breathes heavily. "But we have seen so much bad stuff happen that I just…"

You know what she wants to say and you are not about to let her.

"Shhh…" You quickly silence her placing your finger on her lips. "Don't even think like that. You can't think like that." You tell her and you know that you are going to do anything in your power to make JJ stop thinking about the worst case scenario. "Garcia is gonna kill you for thinking like that when she wakes up." You finish and hope that your words will bring some sort of comfort to her. The same kind of comfort that her blonde head resting on your shoulder is giving you. Sometimes the level of comfort that JJ is able to offer you is truly astonishing. You have always considered yourself a fairly intelligent person, but you will never be able to understand the effect that the press liaison has on you. And even in a horrible situation like this you can't help but notice the electricity that runs through your body every time JJ touches you. And while you haven't exactly been able to define whatever it is that you feel every time you're in her presence, you know that you wouldn't be able to get through all of this without her. So as you gently caress her hand still squeezing yours hard, you know that everything just has to be OK.


End file.
